Before hip-hop heads like Russell Simmons and Kanye West made an appearance at the Occupy Wall Street protests earlier this week, I wondered where the Black people were in this movement. Considering that the demonstrators are fighting against corporate greed, I felt African-Americans should be there front and center since we’ve been suffering from economic injustice as whole for centuries.
So this past Sunday, after church I hopped on the #2 train to Fulton St. My agenda was to find a group of Black people and a group of
Christians who are a part of the OWS (Occupy Wall Street) Protest. Luckily, after 45 minutes of walking around and reading some
clever signs, I found a circle of African-Americans, Latinos, Asians, Indians, Arabs and some White people in the midst of those that have gathered in Zuccotti Park for OWS. Together they called themselves the
People of Color Working Group or POC.
I began listening to the group or should I say the group began listening to each other. Every time someone said something, the group repeated what they said. I assumed this was done because of the noise in the area. Also, when someone began to speak that person would say mic check. Even though there was no microphone in sight. I thought that was kind of funny.
Anyway, I must have listened to about five people give suggestions including activist and writer
Kevin Powell on how the group can make a lasting impact in our society. Powell thanked the group for coming together since he said he has been getting calls from people across the country who wanted to know where were the Black leaders in the OWS movement. He encouraged the group to stay focused and develop an agenda to avoid falling apart.
However, the most surprising and sensible comment was that people of color needed to be on the OWS General Assembly (GA). The GA is the management team so to speak for the OWS protest. According to a young man in , the GA was 95% White at that present moment.
I never found out how many people already made up the GA but I was surprised that even in a movement about solidarity, Black people and other people of color were missing from the GA. Then again if people of color were not stepping up to the plate, I should not expect White people to seek them out and apparently neither does POC.
Before I go any further, according to an e-mail I got from Kanene who is in charge of the Press subcommittee, the POC Working Group was created “in response to the lack of racial diversity and lack of racial consciousness at #OWS (demographically and culturally and ideologically dominated by whites.)…The group aims to put the needs of the most oppressed sectors of society at the forefront of this struggle.
The e-mail went on to say that the POC Working Group is open to all who identify as people of color; much of its membership is folks of color who have felt alienated and/or disenfranchised by the 'colorblind' rhetoric and structure of #ows and by the lack of racial sensitivity/consciousness of so many of its participants/leaders.
Back to the POC Working Group meeting. Once everyone had their say, the group split into the different subcommittees like Childcare, Arts & Culture, Education, Strategy and
many more. Then I began speaking to Malik Rashaan who created the Twitter handle
@OccupytheHood during week two of OWS in order to get more Black people involved in the demonstrations.
Rashan told me that he got 4,000 followers in a matter of days including politicians, teachers, activists and artists. Evidently people nationwide were looking for the Black faces in the movement.
We had a real straightforward conversation about why Black people and all persons of color need to get involved. Here are some excerpts from that talk:
“I want Brothers and Sisters to come out here and volunteer. I don’t want anyone to think this is anti-wall street. This is your city. This is your country. Come and be heard. Don’t just melt into the pot. I don’t like that term. It’s the dumbest term ever. We’re a gumbo, we all stand out individually. Be the shrimp or whatever it is that you are…
I’m from South Jamaica, Queens. I was born and raised in the hood. Every sign I make says 'you should be here.' I’ve had Black Panthers out here who don’t necessarily like White people. They’re out here in solidarity because the beast is right here. My son is in college. That degree ain’t nothing but a proof of purchase. Where’s he gonna work when he graduates?
I let my son (20 years old) take off from school and come up here from Atlanta. I let my daughter (17 years old) take off from high school for a week because they had to be a part of this. If we’re not a part of this, we’re gonna break apart.”
I hope Malik’s words will encourage everyone reading this to contribute in any way to the OWS protest if you agree with the cause. Whether or not you’re a person of color, America is moving toward a society that only cares for the rich.
Don’t get me wrong, being wealthy is not a problem but when a majority of people in a society are not afforded the opportunity to live comfortably even when they’re working more than 40 hours a week or when they have a degree/ relevant experience but cannot find a job or when our young people turn to guns, drugs and violence to make a living. Something has to change.
As the poster says POC Working Group meets on Sundays at 3 PM and Wednesdays at 6:30 PM near Zuccotti Park under the big red thing in lower Mannhattan.
